


Play a game with me

by Tulveli



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Patrol antics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-18
Updated: 2017-11-15
Packaged: 2018-11-02 02:17:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10934907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tulveli/pseuds/Tulveli
Summary: Chat Noir convinces Ladybug to play games with him during patrol one night.  A seemingly innocent agreement leads to much more than the two heroes had foreseen.





	1. Truth or Dare

 

 

“Truth or Dare?”

 

Ladybug gawked at Chat Noir.  “What?!”

 

“I just thought it would be good to have something to pass the time with…” Chat grinned awkwardly, trying to back-pedal.  He held up a hand as Ladybug opened her mouth to reply.  “No questions relating to our identities, Cat’s Honour.  And you can stop any time you want, no penalty or explanation needed…”

 

Ladybug bit back a laugh at the awkward manner of her partner.  She turned away, surveying the streets below for any sign of trouble.  She was used to Truth or Dare being a way for teenagers to discover each other’s secret crushes or put them in awkward situations… There was usually a penalty for refusing the given question or dare, but Chat had said that they could stop without that – he was respecting her wishes, as he always did.  Curiosity was niggling at the back of her mind.  What was he doing this for?  Only one way to find out.

 

“Dare,” Ladybug muttered before leaping to the next roof.

 

Chat Noir stared, dumbfounded, as the girl in the red suit jumped and ran over a few rooftops.  He honestly hadn’t expected his lady to take part in this silly game.  The superhero returned to his senses just in time to follow her before he lost sight of her. 

 

As the sworn protectors of Paris, Ladybug and Chat Noir did regular night patrols to keep an eye out for any troublemakers, but aside from the occasional drunken dispute or attempted mugging, the patrols rarely resulted in anything necessary of their heroic personas.  It was an excuse to get some exercise and see the city as only a superhero can, but patrols were generally a quiet affair.  Chat Noir had been wanting to spend more time simply talking to Ladybug, but she was very secretive.  He hoped that his latest idea might help them have something to pass the time when they weren’t fighting akuma victims.

 

The feline hero caught up to his partner a few streets away and grinned as he saw the scene below them.  A young couple were walking down the street and had stopped outside a house.  They had obviously been on a date, and were saying goodnight.  _Perfect_ , he thought to himself, and dropped down to a balcony nearby to pick a flower from someone’s potted plant before Ladybug could tell him off.

 

It would seem that his lady was too caught up in watching the scene herself, as she hadn’t even noticed Chat’s presence behind her until he presented the flower to her, right under her nose. 

 

Ladybug grumbled.  “Chat-”

 

“For them,” Chat Noir interrupted, pointing the flower at the unsuspecting couple.  “A purr-esent from Lady Luck herself would be well received by the happy couple, don’t you think?”  He winked at her.

 

Ladybug blinked slowly, and a small smile crept onto her lips in realisation.  For once, he wasn’t trying to hit on her; this was her dare.

 

Ladybug nodded and took the flower from Chat’s hand.  She swung her yoyo to a chimney on the next roof, swooped down and with careful precision, dropped the flower so that it landed perfectly in the young man’s hand, before her momentum carried her off and out of sight.

 

Chat Noir smiled and watched the look of shock and delight as the young couple realised what had happened and the man put the flower into his date’s hair, earning a bashful smile from her.  Chat vaulted over to the next roof, following Ladybug.

 

“Taking a flower from a pot plant on someone’s balcony counts as stealing, Chat.”  Ladybug said when her partner had caught up with her.

 

The cat-hero grinned and leant on her shoulder.  “Says the lady who stole my heart?”

 

Ladybug pushed him off her shoulder and groaned.  They were _not_ having this conversation again.  “Truth or Dare?”

 

“Truth,” Chat replied, still gazing at her lovingly.

 

Ladybug mused over what she could ask him for a while, as they continued jumping over the rooftops of Paris.  She stopped in front of a small park, and stared down at the statue of the two heroes, still musing.  When she heard Chat behind her, she asked softly, “What’s your favourite part of this gig?”

 

“Being a superhero?”

 

Ladybug nodded.

 

“You mean besides our nightly rendezvous?”  Chat smirked.

 

Ladybug rolled her eyes, and Chat looked toward the city skyline, his smile becoming more wistful.  “Freedom,” he whispered.  “As Chat Noir, I’m free.”

 

Seeing the look in her partner’s eyes made Ladybug’s heart ache.  Chat was always so carefree and silly, yet in that one line, she saw that his black mask wasn’t the only one he wore.  Something in his tone made her worry for him and, not for the first time, she wondered what is civilian life was like.  She couldn’t ask though.  Knowing identities was a risk that they couldn’t take.

 

Not to mention, it was against the rules of the game. 

 

“Your turn, My Lady.  Truth or Dare?”  Chat vaulted over to the next roof, continuing their surveillance.

 

“Can’t risk you being a cat-burglar again, so I’ll have to go with truth.”  She was a few steps behind her partner, but Ladybug knew that he would hear her.  “Race you to the Place du Tertre first, though.”

 

They stared at each other for a few seconds before they both sprang into action at the same moment, leaping over buildings and across streets, taking care to check the streets for signs of trouble as they went.  As they approached Sacre Coeur, the two heroes were perfectly tied.  Ladybug saw the opportunity to get ahead, and flung her yoyo to the top of the cathedral.  Just before it was able to latch onto the architecture, something shot out from her left and knocked the yoyo off course.

 

Ladybug spun her feet and slid across the roof, narrowly avoiding plummeting off the building as she retracted her yoyo.  She turned her head in the direction of where the projectile had come from and saw a black figure leap from the building beside her and cursed under her breath.  “I’ll kill that cat when I catch him.”

 

“ _If_ you catch him!”  Chat Noir called back as he gripped the cathedral and leapt up to retrieve his baton from where it had lodged itself in the roof.

 

Ladybug swore and threw her yoyo for a second time, firmly latching onto one of the statues of the ornate roof before swinging around the building towards their meeting place.  She saw Chat standing on a roof overlooking the Place du Tertre and saw an opportunity to beat him at his own game.  The spotted heroine swung right past him and landed in the centre of the artists’ square, posing proudly before turning back to her partner to grin smugly at him.  Chat Noir had not actually entered the destination yet so, by technicality, she won.

 

Chat narrowed his eyes at Ladybug and made his way safely from the roof to ground level, before walking over to her slowly.  “Going to be pedantic, are you?”

 

Ladybug’s grin widened.  “If you’re going to play dirty, knocking my yoyo off course like that?  Yes, I can join your little game.”

 

Chat leaned in close and whispered, “I love it when you play dirty with me, My Lady.”

 

Ladybug huffed and fought the blush threatening her cheeks.  “I won’t be playing anything with you if you keep that up.  Wasn’t it your turn to ask me a question?”

 

He chuckled good-naturedly and thought for a moment as they walked through the mostly empty square, admiring the artworks on display.  Once they had found their way back up to the rooftops Chat asked, “Favourite Akuma fight so far?”

 

Ladybug blanched.  “ _Favourite_?  Chat, I don’t exactly enjoy putting our lives on the line.  I do this because we have to.”

 

Chat grinned and narrowed his eyes.  “I’ve seen that spark you get in your eyes when we’re in the swing of things, LB.  You can’t tell me you don’t find it at least a bit enjoyable.”

 

Ladybug was quiet for a moment.  Her partner wasn’t _wrong, but…_ “I still don’t think it’s right to rank them like that…”

 

“Yeah, I think I worded that one poorly…”  Chat vaulted over the next few streets with his spotted partner in tow.

 

Ladybug was still deep in thought, as she followed.  After a few minutes of silence had passed and they stopped together overlooking a marketplace, she said slowly, “I suppose fighting the Gamer was kinda fun… We got to pilot a real live mecha!”

 

Chat Noir pretended to wipe away a tear.  “Catbug was the greatest mecha love-child a parent could ask for.”

 

“What do I have to do to ensure you never say that sentence again?” Ladybug looked at her partner, unimpressed.

 

Chat grinned and sidestepped towards her, he leaned down and tapped a finger on his cheek, indicating that he wanted a kiss.  The heroine poked his cheek gently with her finger and turned to survey the market place.

 

Chat pouted momentarily before his trademark grin returned to his face.  “Worth a shot.  How about we have a competition to see who’s better at UMS3?”

 

“Competition?  You?  Hah!” Ladybug mocked.

 

“Bold words, My Lady.  It seems you underestimate this cat’s gaming purr-owess.”

 

Ladybug rolled her eyes at the pun.  “I don’t doubt that you’re good, Chat Noir… But I do have an unfair advantage.”

 

Chat held a hand over his heart and bowed his head slightly.  “I can promise you, My Lady that I won’t let myself be distracted by your dazzling looks and wit.”

 

“I have luck on my side, you silly cat.”  Ladybug deadpanned.  “Besides, where would we even hold this little competition?  Going over to each others’ houses would kinda blow the whole secret identity thing.”

 

Chat laughed awkwardly.  “Y-yeah… of course…”  But he had a great gaming set up… and if she didn’t know that it was his house… he scratched an imaginary itch at the back of his neck  “What if we held it at someone else’s house?  W-with their permission of course!”

 

Ladybug raised an eyebrow at her partner, questioningly.  “Who’s house did you have in mind?”

 

“Adrien Agreste!  We’ve saved him once or twice from akumas.  I’ve seen his room and he’s got a great set-up!  Big monitors, comfy chairs.  We’d have a blast!”

 

Ladybug made a quiet screech as she inhaled in shock.  “A-a-adrien?!  You want us to break into Adrien’s room for this?”  Not that Marinette would mind seeing the inside of Adrien’s room again… but maybe not with Chat Noir in the picture.

 

“Not break in, we’d get purr-mission.”  Chat patted his chest as he started gloating, “I actually happen to be friends with the guy myself, so it’d be no sweat to ask him.  I know he’ll say yes to us.”

 

“You can’t just go and invite yourself over to someone’s house, Chat!  Saving him a few times isn’t enough of a reason.”

 

“Didn’t you hear me, LB?  We’re close.  Really close.”  ‘Couldn’t be closer if we tried,’ Adrien thought to himself.

 

Ladybug shook her head.  “He’s a busy guy, I wouldn’t want to disrupt him.  I’m pretty sure he has more than his fair share of extra-curricular activities.  Plus regular study and homework to keep up with.  He doesn’t need the distraction.”

 

Chat smirked.  “Been keeping tabs, huh?” 

 

Ladybug spluttered.

 

“We could always organise it for a time when he’ll be busy with a photoshoot or something.  Then we won’t be disturbing him.  I’ll ask him tonight!”

 

“No!  Don’t!”  Ladybug shouted, panicked.  “I really don’t think this is a good idea, Chat.  I-I-I mean being in his room without him?  T-that’s not really something he’d be comfortable with, I’m sure.  A-and what if someone else walked in on us, huh?  That would be hard to explain and we could get ourselves and him in trouble!  Not to mention we might be giving people extra information about us that could risk identities or something.”

 

“Scared you’ll lose to me bugaboo?  We could always play co-op, you know.  We already make such a miraculous team.”  The feline hero winked at his partner.

 

Ladybug groaned at his pun and folded her arms.  “I’m not scared of losing to you, Chat.  These are legitimate concerns.  You should be more cautious sometimes.”

 

Chat sighed.  “I can guarantee he won’t mind us using his room.  If you doubt me, feel free to pay him a visit and ask him yourself.  His door has a lock, and we can go late at night when people won’t be moving around the house anyway.”

 

Ladybug’s cheeks flared red at the mention of visiting Adrien.  It was one of her many daydreams she had, but she’d never had the courage to put it into practice.  Chat had mentioned the idea so casually, and it sounded enticing, but… no… no.  She couldn’t.

 

“You’re forgetting another little detail,” Ladybug countered.  “Adrien is in the same class at school as that Alya girl.  You know, the one who runs the Ladyblog?  If word of this got out to her, she’d go crazy!”

 

Chat Noir frowned.  Ladybug really thought he would go telling everyone?  He could keep a secret!  He shook his head.  She just doesn’t know Adrien very well …yet.  “Word won’t get out, I paw-mise. Adrien will keep his mouth shut.”

 

“Chat this is reckless, and stupid.  We can’t just-” Chat cut off his partners words with a finger to her lips.

 

“Me thinks my Lady doth protest too much.”  He smiled fondly at his partner.  “How often do we just get a night to have fun and hang out together?  I’ll make certain that everything happens smoothly and there will be no repercussions.  You have my word.”

 

Ladybug looked into her partner’s eyes for a moment and then started chuckling.  “You’re very serious about this, suddenly.”

 

Chat feigned a hurt expression.  “I’ve never been anything but serious when it comes to spending time with you, My Lady.”  He took her hand in his and bent down to kiss it, but she pulled back before he could reach.

 

“How could I possibly have thought otherwise?”  Ladybug smirked at Chat.  The latter chuckled back and rubbed one hand at the back of his neck.  “Fine… But I’m checking to be sure that your idea isn’t going to put Adrien out in the slightest.  If I get even a hint of an idea that he doesn’t want to do this, then we don’t.  No complaints.  Okay?”

 

Chat beamed.  “When should I-uh Adrien expect to see you?”

 

“O-oh… umm…”  Ladybug swallowed.  She would have to go visit Adrien.  At his house.  In his room.  Adrien.  Oh no.  No no no no no.  What should she say to him?  She’d make a fool of herself, probably trip over her yoyo string and tumble into him.  Then he’ll fall back and crack his head on a table, he’ll have to get sent to hospital and that will tarnish Ladybug’s reputation forever.  Worse: he’ll hate her and never want to marry her!  Ladybug opened her mouth and mumbled some gibberish.

 

Chat cocked his head slightly at his partner’s strange expressions.  “I’m pretty sure he’s free tomorrow evening.  How about some time after 9?  I’ll let him know you’re coming so he leaves a window open.  Oh!  Just make sure you swing onto the right side of the roof from the house with flowers across the street – you should avoid the security cameras that way.  I’ll put out some glow in the dark markers for you.”

 

Ladybug nodded slowly, trying to process everything that he had just said.  She mumbled the important information.  “After 9… flowers… glow markers…” 

 

Chat grinned.  She was actually agreeing! “Great!  Looks like patrol’s over for tonight, so I’ll go pay a visit now, and you can go tomorrow.  Good night, Ladybug, sleep well.”

 

“Yeah, goodnight Chat.”  Ladybug replied automatically, barely registering what he had said.  Patrol was over?  She looked around to see where she was.  She didn’t even remember the last section, having been too caught up in her thoughts.  Chat seemed more alert tonight, so he would have spotted anything untoward, she hoped.

 

After standing on a rooftop for several minutes by herself, Ladybug made her way back home.  She didn’t have the brain power for any of this tonight.  She needed sleep.

 


	2. I Spy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien is a comedian, Tikki is supportive, and Marinette is... Marinette.

Chat Noir stretched his joints out as he dropped back into his bedroom and dropped his transformation.  “She actually agreed.”  His head was still in the clouds after his patrol with Ladybug.

 

A snickering reminded him of the other presence in the room, his kwami.  “Sure kid, but doesn’t Chat have to ask Adrien permission first?”

 

Adrien grinned devilishly and walked into his bathroom.  He brushed a few stray hairs aside and looked at his reflection in the mirror, smirking slightly.  “Hey buddy, you’re cool if I use your computer and games collection for an evening with LB, right?”

 

He shrugged at his reflection.  “Be my guest, man.  Hey, while we’re having this chat, could you… you know… try to be a bit more chill around Ladybug?  Don’t want to scare her off, you know?”

 

“Dude, I am the epitome of cool.”

 

. . .

 

Marinette dropped her schoolbag beside her desk and sighed as she sank into her chair.  After last night’s patrol, her head was a jumble and she barely remembered the work from school that day.  Tonight she was meant to visit Adrien.  As much as the idea made her sick with nerves, she couldn’t stand him up when he was expecting her.

 

“Curse that stupid cat,” she mumbled under her breath.

 

A blur of red flew out of Marinette’s purse and sat on her desk in front of her.  “I didn’t push this last night since you were tired after patrol, but it sounds like you need to get a few things off your chest.”

 

The teenager sighed.  She suspected Tikki already knew what had happened, but chose not to question the kwami.  After relaying the events of patrol, Marinette frowned and bit her lower lip.  “You don’t have to talk me out of this, I know what you’re going to say.”

 

Tikki blinked her large eyes innocently.  “I wasn’t going to tell you what to do.  It’s ultimately up to you to make that decision.  I’m just here to give you advice and help you talk through these things if you need me to.”

 

The girl nodded and folded her arms over the desk in front of her, slouching in her seat slightly.  “I’m not planning on going through with this stupid idea of his.”

 

“Why agree to this much then?”  Tikki’s eyes widened slightly, then narrowed as she grinned with a look of mischief.  “Because you want to see Adrien?”  She sung the last word.

 

This caused the girl’s cheeks to blush a deep red.  “N-no!  Chat wouldn’t take no for an answer – the boy can’t see reason!  Adrien on the other hand…”  Her eyes travelled to the wall to meet a poster of Adrien.

 

“And you think you’ll be eloquent enough to convince him to see reason?”  Tikki eyed her charge knowingly.

 

“Hey!”  Marinette snapped back to the red creature in front of her.  “I have more confidence around him as Ladybug.”  She wasn’t sure if she was trying to convince Tikki or herself.

 

The kwami giggled.  “I’m just teasing, Marinette.  Although I’m not really sure you’ll have enough confidence if Adrien does like the idea of it…”

 

Marinette’s eyes widened, “why would he like the idea?  Chat Noir probably forced him into it.”

 

“Chat did say they were close, right?”

 

“Chat also once said that he and I were a ‘thing,’” Marinette frowned, recalling an incident from back when they had to fight Copycat.  She only discovered what he had said long after when watching videos on the Ladyblog, and it still irked her a little.  “Adrien’s never once mentioned being friends with Chat, so I doubt it’s true.”

 

This caused the kwami to smile mysteriously for several minutes.  When their eyes met, Marinette raised an eyebrow questioningly.  Finally the kwami spoke.  “I was just thinking that if what Chat said _was_ true, then it means Adrien can keep a secret, right?”

 

Marinette chewed her lower lip.  “Yeah, I suppo- hey!  Who’s side are you on?”

 

Tikki laughed heartily.  “I’m just here to help you consider things, like I said.  You’ve always been good at following your head and doing what you think is right.”

 

Marinette’s brow furrowed as she thought about the whole situation.  “It honestly wouldn’t feel right to leave Adrien waiting, if Chat did tell him to expect Ladybug tonight… and I have no reason to suspect he wouldn’t have done so,” she spoke quietly, as much to herself as Tikki.  “Its obvious that cat is up to something, he’s never been so insistent before, so I’m suspecting that he’s somehow convinced Adrien to go along with this plan.  I just have to work out what Adrien stands to gain from this.”

 

“Marinette, I don’t think Chat Noir is one for bribery,” Tikki reasoned.

 

The teenager blinked at her tiny friend.  “What?  No-no… I don’t think he would either.  He wouldn’t bribe, blackmail or steal anything.  He wouldn’t lie, but…” she trailed off, finishing the sentence in her head, ‘but he’s certainly a fan of stretching and twisting the truth.’

 

Tikki watched Marinette’s face change to show many different puzzled expressions as the girl considered the situation.  Eventually she decided to chime in, “I’m not sure you’ll be able to figure everything out with the information you have so far.  In any case, you don’t need to.  You just need to plan out what you’ll be doing tonight when you go see Adrien.”

 

“Tonight,” Marinette echoed nervously.  She was going to see Adrien tonight.  She was actually going to visit him as Ladybug and _talk to him._ Or at least try.  In any case, she was going to visit him.  At his house.  In his room.

 

“Marinette.  Focus.”  Tikki had to hover in front of the girl’s face to get her attention again.  “Let’s practice.  I’ll be Adrien, okay?”

 

Marinette blushed slightly and nodded.

 

“So, you swing down into his room and-”

 

“Tikki, I would obviously knock first!”  Marinette interrupted.

 

The kwami smiled good-naturedly.  “Alright then, knock.”

 

Marinette’s eyes widened slightly at the thought of having to roleplay this with Tikki.  She was never the most confident actor, and everything about this situation made her feel even more self-conscious.  Tikki stared at her patiently, and eventually she tapped her knuckles lightly against her desk, making a soft knocking sound.

 

. . .

 

Ladybug slid open one side of her magical yoyo and looked at the numbers in the top of the screen – 9:15pm.  She sighed and slid the cover of the yoyo back into place.  He said after 9, so technically she wasn’t late.

 

In fact, she had been early.  Marinette’s parents had gone to bed at 8:30, and she had transformed after completing her homework and finalising her plans with Tikki.  She had sat on a rooftop two streets away from Adrien’s house for the last half hour, trying to convince herself that what she was about to do wasn’t the most reckless thing in her life.  That thought had led to her weighing it against jumping head first into the mouth of a tyrannosaurus rex, and she honestly wasn’t sure which idea was worse.

 

“You made it through that, though.”  The superhero said to herself.  “You’ve saved the city multiple times.  You can have one conversation with him.”

In her head, she imagined both Alya and Tikki cheering her on.

 

Ladybug followed the instructions Chat Noir had told her the previous night and found the glow in the dark stickers he put on the building – five small circles arranged in the same pattern as the dots on her earrings.  She smiled in spite of the nerves eating her away from the inside.  Just as Chat had said, one window was ajar, just enough for her to land on the window sill and slip inside.  She stood at the edge of the roof and peeked through the windows.  Lying back on the lounge, with one arm behind his head and the other holding up a book was none other than Adrien Agreste.

 

As she looked at him a little longer, she noticed that his leg was twitching erratically.  He moved his hand out from behind his head and combed his fingers through his hair before shuffling into a different position.  A moment later, he put the book down, swung his legs over the side of the lounge and sat up.  As he looked over to the open window, Ladybug wondered nervously if she had been spotted, but when he pushed himself to his feet, he didn’t walk towards her, but instead seemed to wander aimlessly around his room.

 

‘He’s nervous,’ she realised.  He looked just as nervous as she felt, which didn’t help her current situation.  Especially when she realised that she was probably the reason he was nervous.  After all, he was expecting a visit from Ladybug, a superhero.

 

She shook her head and swallowed.  She would not be responsible for causing Adrien to feel so nervous any longer.  He had probably been restless since 9pm, and she couldn’t let him wait any longer.

 

. . .

 

Adrien spun around to face his windows the moment he heard the soft tap.  His eyes grew wide and his breath caught in his throat as he saw the graceful form of Ladybug perched on the edge of the open window.  She slowly raised a hand and gave him a tiny wave.  Her mouth moved as if to say ‘hi,’ but he didn’t hear a sound.

 

“H-hi,” Adrien hesitantly waved back at her.  Why did he have to feel so nervous and inadequate around her without his mask?  They stared into each others’ eyes for several minutes, until Adrien finally broke the silence, remembering his manners.  “Come in.  Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude.”

 

Ladybug blinked and dropped down to the floor gracefully.  “N-no, not at all.  I-uh...”  What was she planning on saying?

 

They both found the details of the floor very interesting.

 

“So… Chat Noir told me the plan,” Adrien spoke slowly, “and it sounds like you two will have fun.”

 

The name Chat Noir brought Ladybug’s thoughts back to something more coherent.  “Right, yes!  I mean, no.”  Adrien looked confused, but she cleared her throat and continued before he could say anything.  “So sorry about this.  Uh… I…” _Get it together!_   “I came to apologise for Chat.  I-I mean on his behalf.  Wait, no, I...  I know he can be a bit …uhh… and then he…”  Ladybug moved her hands to gesture something, but neither she nor Adrien where quite sure what.

 

Adrien blinked and smiled politely, guessing at what she was trying to articulate.  “Y-yeah, he can be pretty… energetic, right?”  Ladybug’s face brightened.  So far, so good!  “Well, I think its great that you guys can use my room.  Father doesn’t let me have friends over, so I don’t get to share this much.  Its so cool that Paris’ superhero duo will be gaming in my room!”

 

Ladybug smiled awkwardly.  She was doomed.  Plan failed, abort mission.  There was no way she could deny the look of happiness on his face.  “Y-yeah, I’m really looking forward to it too.  Just want to make sure you’re fine with it.”

 

“I am, Ladybug.  You don’t have to worry about me at all.”

 

That dazzling smile of his was going to be the end of her.  “O-okay, good.  Great.  I’ll see you later then.”  Ladybug turned and narrowly avoided tripping over his chair as she made her way to the window.  “Bye!”  She called before quickly leaping out of the window and making her escape, following the same path she had come in on.

 

“Goodbye, Ladybug.”  Adrien blinked.  He hoped that he hadn’t said something to upset Ladybug.  She seemed very distracted, and left in a hurry.  “Probably just a bad day,” he mumbled.

 

. . .

 

Marinette groaned into her pillow in frustration.  “Please don’t say anything, Tikki.”

 

The kwami smiled fondly and flew down to Marinette’s desk to give the girl some space.  Things would work themselves out.  They always did.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All credits for the first scene go to my awesome sister. She wrote the idea and dialogue between Adrien and the mirror, I just fleshed it out.
> 
> Thank you so much for the lovely comments and kudos on chapter 1, I hope you all enjoy the continuation of this story.


	3. Two Truths and a Lie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even a sleepy Tikki gives just the right amount of helpful push. Plagg is never helpful.

Marinette paced across the length of her balcony.  Plan A (convince Chat that gaming night was a bad idea) had failed on that stupid fateful patrol last week.  Plan B (convince Adrien not to host it) fell through the moment Adrien’s name had been mentioned.  Why did she even try?  She knew that she would end up making a fool of herself in front of him.  It was probably just by the luck of Ladybug that she didn’t end up putting either of them in hospital, or worse.  She sighed in frustration.  All she had left was plan C, and that could only work for so long.

Plan C was refusing to set a date for the event or insist that she was busy when Chat Noir suggested one.  It was a good plan to buy her some time, but she needed plan D. 

Tikki popper her head out of the flower pot she’d been sleeping in.  “Marinette, it’s nearly time for patrol.”

“I can’t go to patrol yet,” she shot back, exasperated.  “I don’t know what plan D is!  I need a plan D, Tikki!”

Tikki rubbed the sleep from her eyes and gazed up at the girl.  Despite not having been privy to Marinette’s inner monologue, she knew the girl well enough to understand her outburst.  “Plan D is have fun?”  She suggested, still waking up properly.

Marinette blinked.  “Have fun?  As in, you think I should just go along with the crazy cat’s weird scheme?”

“I’m honestly not really sure why you’re so opposed to it.  You two started taking joint patrols to help with your teamwork, and here Chat is suggesting what could be considered a team-building exercise.  I understand your hesitations about his venue of choice, but unless you can come up with an alternative I really don’t think you can talk him out of that anymore.”

“Yeah, plan B was a complete disaster.”  Marinette mumbled. 

Tikki flew over to Marinette’s phone and tapped a button, lighting up her lock screen to check the time.  “Come on, you don’t want to keep Chat Noir waiting.”

Marinette nodded.  “I’ll just stick with plan C for a bit longer, and figure this out later.”

“What’s plan C?”  Tikki cocked her head quizzically.

“Pretend to be busy.”  Marinette turned her head away and mumbled, knowing exactly how childish plan C sounded.  She was grateful when Tikki just smiled and nodded in response.

. . .

Chat Noir sat on the roof of Notre Dame, fiddling with his baton.  Ladybug would show up for patrol soon.  Excluding Akuma attacks, he hadn’t seen her since a week ago, as Adrien, and tonight they would settle on a date for the gaming tournament.

His tail flicked back and forward with agitation.  He tried to speak to her about it earlier that week, but each time she scolded him for not being focused on the job.  They had been fighting Akuma victims at the time, so he could hardly blame her, but it didn’t help.  He wanted to have everything prepared for their perfect evening together.  He shuffled his positioning as a breeze blew across the roof.

Chat’s ears flicked at the sound of a pair of feet landing behind him.  He didn’t have to turn to know who it was, but he did anyway.  “Good evening, My Lady.  Care to join me for some star-gazing?”

“Can’t do much of that with all the lights in the city, Chat.”  Ladybug sat down beside him.

He inched closer and stared deeply into her eyes.  “Really?  I could swear I can see them just fine from here.”

Ladybug pushed him back with a finger to his nose.  “You’ve been far too distracted all week.”

“I can focus twice as hard this week to make up for it, Ladybug.  But first…”  He flashed her a broad grin.  “We need to set a date.”

“Don’t think I ever agreed to date you, Chat, and I certainly wouldn’t do so to get you to focus on your job.”

“I…”  Chat was about to say something, but snapped his mouth closed, a faint blush creeping over his cheeks.  “I was actually meaning the gaming tournament.  I wouldn’t – wait.”  His brow furrowed as he replayed her words in his head.  “You think I’d be so low as to use bribery to get a date with you?”

Ladybug was taken aback by the look of hurt in her partner’s eyes.  “Well, if you think about the way you worded it…”

His signature grin returned, and she rolled her eyes, realising that he was putting on an act again.  “We both know I’m far too charming to need to resort to bribery.”

“You wish.”

. . .

“I think a Friday or Saturday night would be best,” Chat said as he and Ladybug jumped over the rooftops of Paris.  “What about this week coming?  That work for you?”

Ladybug swung to the next roof as she tried to think up a believable excuse for being busy that week.  Then she remembered that she didn’t need one.  Secret identities were a blessing sometimes.  “No, I’ll be busy.”

“Alright, how about the next weekend?”

Ladybug grimaced as she realised where this would get her.  She needed to buy herself more time before this.  “Ah… to be honest, I’m really busy at the moment, I have a lot of stressful things going on, so…” 

“Oh, sure!  I mean, we’re coming up to exam time for most schools and universities, right?” 

Chat’s understanding nature brought a small smile to Ladybug’s face, though she felt a twinge of guilt as well.  “Right.”  It wasn’t a lie, she could certainly use the extra study time with all the classes she’d had to skip for akuma fights.

Chat noticed something in her expression and faltered, stopping her at the next roof they jumped to and looking into her eyes with a slight frown.  His voice was hesitant.  “It isn’t anything more serious, I hope?”  Ladybug raised her eyebrow.  Chat continued, fiddling with his baton.  “L-like something happened in your family.  I…”  He scratched the back of his neck.  “I know we have secret identities for a reason and all that, but seriously LB, if something does happen, you can tell me without… you know… telling me.  I’ll understand.  I mean,” he paused, feeling awkward about saying his next words.  “Family comes first, right?”

Ladybug’s eyes widened.  She hadn’t expected this from the usually debonair and flirtatious black cat.  She shook her head slowly, as much out of surprise as in answer.  “No, it’s nothing like that.  My family are fine, but thanks.”  She paused and looked out to the streets below.  Watching the people walk by brought her back to her senses and in her mind she recalled Chat’s words.  He was just about to turn to go when she reached out and held his elbow, turning his attention back to her.  “Chat?  Same goes for you too.  If something happens, and you need time away from,” she gestured to their masks and the street below, “this… just say the word.”

Chat Noir paused for a moment, considering the irony of her statement.  He couldn’t blame Ladybug for not knowing, but being Chat Noir was his escape from not feeling like he had a family _to_ come first.  In some strange ways, she was his family.  He nodded slowly.  “Thank you, My Lady.”

Ladybug and Chat Noir both became caught up in their own thoughts, so the rest of patrol that night was completed in silence, save for the regular noises of the city.

Chat Noir wondered if there would come a time where he would be able to tell Ladybug how much she meant to him.  Over their time together, she had become his closest friend, and someone he trusted with every fibre of his being.  Adrien hoped that she would enjoy their gaming night enough to want another.

Ladybug replayed Chat’s speech in her head again.  Her family’s health and safety had always been a primary concern, especially after she became Ladybug.  She wondered how she had recovered enough to speak after his words had floored her.  Where had it come from?  Was this caring, thoughtful person always hiding beneath the flirtatious and joking exterior he showed?  Was either just a part he only showed when he wore his black mask?

She replayed his words again in her mind as she watched people in the plaza below.  _‘You can tell me without…you know… telling me.’_   Some part of her felt as though she had misjudged him.  Maybe Tikki was right.  Maybe Plan D should simply be to have fun.  It’s what the silly cat wanted, wasn’t it?  After all, they were friends.  What are friends for, if not to beat to the ground in Ultimate Mecha Strike 3?

As they approached the Eiffel Tower, and the end of their patrol, Ladybug realised that they still hadn’t set a date for said beating.  She cleared her throat as they landed on the side of the tower.  “Sometimes I have to wake up early on Saturdays, so Friday isn’t so good, but… next Saturday night?”

Ladybug could have sworn that Chat’s eyes were shining brighter than the moon.  “Next Saturday would be perfect, Bug.  What time?  What food should I get for you?”  He managed to stop himself before asking what temperature she might want the thermostats set to.  Two questions was enough for one breath, right?

. . .

Chat Noir bounded in through his window and lay down on his sofa, dramatically sighing as his superhero costume disappeared in a sparkle of green light.  “It’s happening,” he said to the ceiling with a goofy smile on his face.  “Next Saturday will be the best night of my life.”

Plagg rolled his eyes and made a choking sound.  “And you haven’t even proposed yet.”

“I will one day,” the boy replied.  He sighed again, still in his own fantasy.  “Maybe if I write her a song?”

“Great idea, especially if your lyrics are as stupid as your poetry.  She’ll know just how annoying you are, and it won’t be a surprise-”  Plagg dodged the small ladybug plush thrown in his direction and doubled over in laughter at a scene playing in his head. 

It was the alluring aroma of his one true love that brought him out of his cackling fit and he looked back to his charge to see the divine image of a small wedge of cheese in his hands.  Plagg wiped away the tears in his eyes and dived through the air towards Adrien’s hand.  When he got close enough, the boy caught him by his scruff, poked the camembert into his eager mouth.  “There.  You have your love, now let me dream about mine.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read, left kudos and commented so far, I really appreciate it.  
> And thanks again to my super-awesome sister for proof reading and giving some great feedback on things that weren't working.


	4. Monopoly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very long chapter with a money-based akuma. Hence the title.  
> Plot is slowly advancing, I promise.

The school bell rang, signalling the end of class and students began packing their books and tablets away and leaving the classrooms.  Adrien saved the notes on his tablet and briefly swapped programs to see the drawing he had been working on.  He was by no means an artist, and the proportions were all wrong, but he did enjoy drawing little figures of Chat Noir and Ladybug in romantic (or sometimes … compromising) situations.  He quickly locked his tablet and put it away as Nino turned to face him.

 “Hey, dude, you busy Saturday evening?  Please say no.”  Nino smiled hopefully.

 “Oh, uh…”  Saturday was when Ladybug would be coming around.  Adrien smiled apologetically, “sorry, man.”

 Nino slumped and clenched a fist dramatically.  “I’m doomed.  Goodbye, cruel world, tell my puppy I love him.”

 “You don’t have a puppy.”  Alya chimed in from behind him.  “What’s so devastating about spending one Saturday alone?”

 “Uhh… means I have no life?”  Nino grinned slightly too wide.

 Alya narrowed her eyes.  “You were quite happy to sit at home planning a short film last Friday, when I invited you to my house.”  She leaned over her desk towards him, their eyes locked together.  “Spill.”

 Nino swallowed and cast a desperate glance at Adrien, sending telepathic wishes for his best friend, the one person supposed to have his back, to save him.  Adrien just smiled back, oblivious, then tilted his head in question.  Nino sighed.  “My aunt’s coming over…”

 “That sounds nice, right?”  Adrien wasn’t sure what response Nino was looking for.

 “Nice?  You don’t know her, dude!  She talks.  She’s always talking.  Dinner lasts for three full hours because she won’t stop and I’m not allowed to leave the table until my parents say that’s okay, but I can’t even ask them because she’s talking to them.  You’ve gotta save me, dude!”

 Adrien blinked, completely unsure of how to respond.  Having someone talk to you during meal time sounded lovely to him.

 “You mean your aunt Joline?”  Alya sighed.  Nino nodded, looking distraught.  “Which means your little cousins are coming too, right?”

 Nino nodded again.  “I almost died last time, it was hell.  They tried to dress me up like a Christmas tree, but then Jean decided I should be a reindeer, so they all jumped on my back and insisted I carry them around for over an hour.”

 Alya laughed.  “Good thing it’s not Christmas time then, right Rudolph?”

 “Can’t you at least pretend to be sympathetic of my plight?”  Nino groaned.

 “Hey, I have to manage kids like that every day, in case you forgot.  You don’t get to complain.  Besides, if –”

 Marinette tapped Alya on the shoulder, interrupting her friend mid-rant, for which Nino was grateful.  “Hey, I have to help out in the bakery soon, so I’m off.” 

 “No probs, girl, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 Marinette nodded and turned to the boys, blushing slightly and avoiding eye contact with Adrien.  “Bye Nino…b-bye Adrien.”  Her voice rose an octave to squeak out the last two words and she rushed out of the classroom as they bid her farewell.

 Adrien blinked and stared at the door for a moment after Marinette disappeared.  Before he could delve too far into deciphering her behaviour, Nino and Alya brought him back to reality, with the continuation of their conversation.

 “-saying is that your cousins really aren’t that bad.  You make it out like it’s a huge deal.”

 “For me, it is, Alya!  Plus my aunt is always asking to borrow my laptop to check stuff.”

 Adrien turned back to his friends.  “Is that a big deal?”

 “Dude!  Seriously?”  Nino exclaimed.

 Alya turned to Adrien.  “Gotta admit, I’m with him on this one,” she jerked a thumb in Nino’s direction.  “You really don’t see the issue?”

 Adrien swallowed.  He was still learning his way through teenage social issues, and evidently his foot was on the edge of another pit in that wide, dangerous landscape.  He spoke slowly.  “Indulge me?  I don’t have aunts.”

 Nino drew a deep breath and put a hand on his best friend’s shoulder.  “Consider yourself lucky.  When an older relative wants to borrow your computer, they almost certainly want to search through every hidden folder you have access to.  That highly offensive rap song you were working on?  They’ll find it.”

 Alya nodded solemnly.  “The smutty fanfiction you wrote?  Doesn’t matter how many hidden folders you buried it in, they’ll dig it up.  Even that random link you accidently clicked that took you to p… a less than decent website… Somehow it’ll show up on your search history, even though you were totally in incognito mode!”

 Adrien leaned back from his two friends and took a breath to steady himself, and hopefully escape their crazy bubble of paranoia.  “Oookay, so are you two actually speaking from experience here or just-?”  He was cut off.

 “It will happen one day!  I swear it!”  Nino all but launched himself at his friend.  “Please dude, you have to save me!  If I have a guest over myself, I gain automatic immunity.  Grant me immunity, dude.”

 Adrien smiled apologetically.  “I’d love to help you out, man, but I wasn’t lying about being busy.”

 Nino nodded solemnly and adjusted his cap.  “No sweat, bud.  Your dad and all, I get it.”  He tilted his head slightly as a thought crossed his mind.  “But we should seriously plan some time to meet up soon anyway.”

 “Your aunt staying in town for a while?”  Adrien chuckled.

 “Nah, just a few days.  For real, though, when was the last time we got to just hang out together outside of school, right?”

 “Hmm… My father’s going overseas in a few weeks.  There’s a slight chance I might be able to get approval from Natalie on a few things while he’s gone.  Leave it with me.”

 “Wow, Adrien, way to sound cryptic there,” Alya laced her fingers together and rested her chin on them, looking calculatingly at him.

 Nino turned to Alya and narrowed his eyes for a moment.  “Are you free, Saturday?”

 Alya snorted.  “Second choice, am I?”

 Nino stared at her for a moment.  “Is that a yes?”

 Alya took a long, drawn out sigh.  “Only if you promise to help me film during the next Akuma fight for my blog.”  When Nino looked like he was about to protest, she added, “I was there last time your aunt and cousins were over.  I’m not negotiating.  Take it or leave it.”

 Nino smiled and stretched his back idly.  “I might need to start investing in a long-range camera to keep out of trouble if you keep doing this to me.”

 . . .

 “Have a nice day!”  Marinette smiled and waved as the customer left the bakery.  There were no other customers for the moment, so she took her phone out to check why it had been vibrating in her pocked during the rush.

  _12 new messages._

She tapped to open them, not surprised that they were all from one person:  Alya.

 _[3:46PM] Yo, girl, how’s biz?  
__[3:46PM] Guess what?  
__[3:47PM] I totally saw someone checking you out as you left the classroom!  You get two guesses as to who it was ;D  
__[3:49PM] No, it wasn’t me, good guess though!  
__[3:52PM] Speaking of Mr. Model, did you get the feeling he was hiding something when he told DJ he was busy sat?  
__[3:53PM] He was totes hiding something.  I wonder what?  
__[3:55PM] Maybe he’s planning something… he might have a secret life, where he’s a spy for the forces of evil, and he’s on a mission to retrieve the golden comic book for the troll king, who would use its power to take control of all super heroes and use them to do his bidding!  
__[3:57PM] …What?  It’s totally possible!  
__[3:58PM] I mean… you can’t prove it’s not.  
__[4:02PM] OMG! Little sisters are the worst!  Promise me you will never have a little sister, Mari!  
__[4:24PM] FINALLY managed to clean up the aftermath of ‘condiment mountain’ -.-  
__[4:28PM] Aaaand now we’re fighting about which princess is the best.  Accepting votes now._  

Marinette snorted in laughter as she read through the messages.  Then she reread the first few messages and blushed furiously.  Alya was mistaken.  That was the only logical conclusion.  There was no possible way Adrien had actually been checking her out.  The boy stared into space a lot.  He probably just happened to be staring near the door and Alya jumped to conclusions.  Yup.  That was it.

 Marinette sighed and typed a response to her friend, completely ignoring her earliest messages.

  _If my phone starts charging me overtime, you’re paying. [4:33PM]_

_Also, you’re crazy.  Running out of bedtime story material? Adrien leading a secret life?  Pfffft! [4:34PM]_

It didn’t take long for a reply to appear.

_[4:35PM] Hey, my phone-based super powers will ensure that I won’t destroy your phone.  I don’t have your clumsiness. :p_

_I knew you secretly liked being akumatised. You’re a villain through and through. [4:36PM]_

_[4:37PM] Only a villain to those who try to harm my bestie ;D (and also to my sisters, apparently)  
_ _[4:38PM] fav princess?_

_Ladybug :p [4:38PM]_

_[4:38PM] Ladybug?  She’s not a ………….wait…………_  
_[4:39PM] ……..…..well, I know what I’M going to be researching tonight!_  
_[4:40PM] Your fault if I’m tired at school tomorrow  
_ _[4:42PM] My sister’s agree that Ladybug’s a princess now… thanks._

_I take no responsibility ^^[4:43PM]_

Marinette laughed at her best friend’s antics as the bell at the door of the bakery rung.  She pocketed her phone quickly and looked up to greet the new customer.

. . .

Marinette smiled awkwardly as the man grumbled and swiped his card again.  The machine beeped loudly, and printed out another receipt saying “DENIED.”  She bit her lower lip as the man glared at his card and swore loudly. 

“Perhaps if you call the bank?”  Marinette asked timidly.

The man clenched his teeth, and turned to glare at someone standing behind him who had just huffed under their breath.  “I have the money, alright?  It’s not my fault the stupid bank can’t do their job!”

Marinette shuffled her feet.  If she were Ladybug, she would have no problems handling this situation, but she was just Marinette, and that wouldn’t command respect or make him listen.  Without her suit, she found his aggression more than a little intimidating.  Fortunately, her father had heard the commotion and stepped out of the kitchen to investigate.

“Is there a problem here?”

The customer looked up at Tom Dupain and pointed at the pay machine.  “It won’t accept my card.  Your machine must be broken, so I-”

Tom’s eyes met with his daughters, and he immediately saw how intimidated she felt.  He nodded towards the doorway behind him, silently telling her to take a break as he continued to listen to the irate customer.  Marinette nodded and thanked her father as she left.

Marinette had found her mother sorting through the bakery accounts upstairs and told her about the incident before heading to her room.  Just as she closed her trapdoor, she heard loud voices coming from outside.  Tikki flew out from her pigtails in a flash of red.

“Marinette, we’ve got trouble.  Time for you to become Ladybug.”

“Just when I thought I’d get a break.  No rest for heroes I suppose, let’s go, Tikki!”

. . .

Ladybug climbed out onto her balcony, planning how she would swing down to the akuma.  Having an akuma attack this close to her home could compromise her identity, but she also had to step in quickly since she knew Chat Noir wouldn’t be there yet.

She managed to swing across a few houses before anyone spotted her, but then she heard a voice she knew all too well.

“Put my wife down!  She was only trying to help you.”  It was her father.

Outside the bakery, Tom was trying to negotiate with a man in a white suit, who held Sabine Cheng by her collar, her toes barely able to touch the ground.  Ladybug glowered and leapt from the roof, straight at the akumatised citizen.

She hooked her yoyo on a nearby lamp post and swung down to kick the man in the back of his head.  The shock of the kick loosened his grip on her mother, and Ladybug pulled her free of his grasp as her momentum carried them both a safe distance away.

“Are you okay, mu-ma’am?”  Ladybug asked as she set her unknowing mother down carefully.

Sabine shifted her clothing away from her neck, breathing heavily.  Her gaze was unfocussed.

A light flashed from Ladybug’s left.  The heroine shifted her position and spun her yoyo in a shield, deflecting the light beam away from her and her mother, but the shocked woman stumbled without someone supporting her.  Ladybug reached back to stop her falling to the ground, but another pair of arms caught her first.

“I’ll take care of her.”  Tom Dupain was fighting back tears as he wrapped his large arms around his wife’s small body protectively.  He looked at Ladybug and bit his trembling lower lip and tried to steady his voice before speaking.  “Th-thank you.  And… be careful.”

Ladybug nodded, biting back the tears that pricked at her eyes upon seeing the terror in her father’s features.  She turned back to the akuma victim.  Later she could cry into her pillow as Marinette and panic about what could have been while Tikki would pat her head comfortingly.  Right now, she was Ladybug, and it was her job to keep everyone safe.

As Ladybug turned back to the man in the white suit, she was relieved to see that he wasn’t currently threatening another citizen.  The outline of a familiar purple butterfly mask faded from his face - for once, Hawkmoth’s timing played to her advantage.  She took a deep breath and looked over the man’s appearance.  His white suit was covered in small numbers, in both black and red, half of his face was covered in a simple white mask, and he held a credit card in one hand and a wallet in the other.

“Ladybug, I will purchase your miraculous.”  He flicked the card in his hand, and a red beam shot out from its magnetic strip, towards her.

Ladybug spun her yoyo to deflect the attack once more.  “Not for sale,” she said through gritted teeth.

“If you like her style, I can recommend some great costume shops, though.”  Chat noir swung down from the roof using his baton extended as a pole.  “So this is the special offer today, My Lady?  What do we call him, blank cheque?”

“It’s ‘Customer,’ Chat Noir.  Which means I’m always right.  I’ll be needing your ring too.  How much?”  The man – Customer – responded.

Chat smirked, “more than you can afford.”

Customer glowered in response and raised the card in response.  “Here’s my payment.  You _will_ accept it!” 

Chat leapt to the side to dodge the red beam from Customer’s card, and struck a nonchalant pose, turning his head to Ladybug.  “He’s driving a hard bargain, My Lady, you up for some haggling?”

“I’ll need a receipt for this, I may need a refund on your puns.”  Despite her words, Ladybug had never felt more grateful for her partner’s comedic antics.  It was easier to focus on her duties as Ladybug with Chat Noir by her side.  Her parents would be safe as long as she did her job. 

Chat chuckled.  “But I have a two for one special, today only.”

Customer turned to some onlookers and used his card to make another attack.  “You will help me get their miraculous.”  As the beam of red from the card made contact with two bystanders, large stacks of 50 euro notes appeared in their hands and they nodded towards Customer before turning to the superheroes.

“Everyone, get inside!”  Ladybug yelled to the crowd.  People generally knew to steer clear of akumas, but people were still milling around.  She easily dodged the two brainwashed civilians when they lunged at her.  “Chat, we have to get that card from him, I’ll bet that’s where the akuma’s hiding.”

Customer was aiming his card at those who were fleeing the scene, but as he shot the red beam again, Chat somersaulted over and deflected the beam with his baton once more.  “You’ll break the bank if you keep that up.”

“The bank’s not the only thing I’ll break,” Customer snarled and fired the beam from his credit card at several civilians.  They lunged at Chat Noir from all sides.  Rather than risk injuring the very people he was trying to protect, Chat launched himself into the air with his baton.

For a moment, he felt the world move in slow motion.  He looked over at Customer, who was aiming his next attack directly at him.  While the hero was free falling, he couldn’t dodge it.

Chat Noir cringed and closed his eyes, bracing for what was to come.  At some unknown point in the future, he would wake up in a strange position, with Ladybug standing victorious, and later Plagg would laugh at him for attacking the love of his life rather than protecting her.  He felt something clench his arms against his chest, and gravity seemed to change direction before the side of his body was thrown against something hard, forcing the air from his lungs.

“You just gonna lie there all day, or are you back with me, kitty?”

His eyes blinked open and he realised that the tight feeling around his body had gone.  He was lying on the roof, staring up at his partner.  Ladybug had saved him.  He wasn’t sure if it was the setting sun in her hair or a concussion, but Adrien could have sworn that there was a halo around her head.  “I’m in your debt, my lady.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes.  “Can you lure him onto the roof?  Then we won’t have to deal with anyone else.”

“You have a plan?”

“I will.”

. . .

It took several minutes of taunting and dodging, along with some clever leverage with Chat’s baton, before the duo had successfully lured Customer onto the roof of a nearby building.  Some people from the streets below were trying to scale the building.

“Better wrap things up before someone else comes to join the fun.”  Ladybug said, throwing her yoyo to ensnare Customer.  “Do the honours, Cat?”

“With pleasure, Bug.”  Chat Noir extended his baton into a pole and flicked the credit card from Customer’s grasp.  Better safe than sorry.  Then he picked it up from the ground and bent the card until it snapped in two.

Ladybug blinked.

Expecting the akuma to appear, she had slackened the line holding Customer, so now he was free once more.  Customer reached into his wallet for another credit card.

“Oh, no you don’t!”  Chat Noir launched himself through the air and grappled the villain.

Ladybug realised that it must be the wallet, or something in it.  She threw her yoyo into the air.  “Lucky Charm!”

A tennis ball fell into her hands.  She frowned and turned to evaluate her surroundings while her partner was grappling with Customer.

A loose tile on the roof.  A toy cart and a glazed bowl on a nearby balcony.  The ball in her hand.  How was she meant to immobilise him?

“Whenever you’re ready, LB.  Don’t hold out on my account!” 

She clenched her teeth and aimed the ball.  This was just crazy enough to work.

“Okay, let go.”  She said as she threw the tennis ball.  It flew through the air and hit the toy cart, which rolled and knocked the bowl from where it rested precariously on a table.  As the bowl wobbled, the glazing reflected the light of the setting sun directly into Customer’s eyes, causing him to stumble.  Customer’s foot slipped on the loose tile and he threw his arms up to grab hold of a chimney and regain his balance, dropping the wallet in the process.

Chat Noir caught it before it fell from the roof and found the offending item inside the wallet: a photograph of the man with two young boys.  He bit his lower lip as he took out the photo and tore it in half.  This time, a glowing black butterfly fluttered out and began to make its escape. 

After Ladybug had purified the akuma and restored all damage done from the fight, Chat Noir turned back to her for their celebratory fist bump.  “Certainly one of your less predictable lucky charms, Bug, but I’ll give credit where credit’s due.  You certainly held up your end of the bargain.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes.

“Almost a shame the fight’s over.  I had so many quips I didn’t get to use.”  He started counting on his fingers.  “You’ve caught my interest.  I’ll give you an ‘I owe you’… You’re in the red.”  He winked playfully at his partner, earning him a gentle shove in the shoulder.

Despite his playful demeanour, he hadn’t missed the worried look in her eyes when Ladybug looked at a building on the street below.  She had been more shaken than usual when he first joined her that day as well.  He cleared his throat.  “I’ll do patrol tonight, take a rest.”

Ladybug blinked at her partner and frowned slightly in thought.  “I’ll be alr-”

He placed a hand gently on her shoulder to silence her.  “Something’s wearing you down.  I’ll be fine by myself, Bugaboo, so take the night off.”

“Thanks,” she nodded slowly, then grinned.  “Don’t think this means I’ll go easy on you on Saturday, Kitty.”

 "Wouldn’t want you to.”

 . . .

 Marinette shivered subconsciously and cuddled closer to her father on the sofa.  He wrapped an arm around her tightly.  To her parents’ knowledge, she had been safely in her room during the attack, but saw what happened from her window.

 “What if Ladybug hadn’t come in time?”  She whispered.

 “He wasn’t going to kill me, dear.”  Sabine’s voice was quiet, but firm.

 Tom rubbed his hands comfortingly on the backs of both his wife and daughter before the younger could speak up again.  “If anything really threatened this family, you know this Super Baker would step in and coat them in toffee until they can’t move a muscle, then fight them off with a baguette!”  He smiled widely and held an imaginary baguette as a fencing foil in one hand.

 Sabine raised an eyebrow and chuckled at her husband’s antics.  He cleared his throat and composed himself again.  “Unless your mother got to them first, of course.”

 Marinette forced herself to smile.  She knew her parents were putting on a brave face for her, and she appreciated their efforts, but she was still shaken by the prospect of her mother having been injured.  As if reading her mind, Sabine said, “I really am fine, Marinette.  I was in shock when the man grabbed me, and then had the wind knocked out of me when Ladybug swooped in to save the day, but I promise you, I wasn’t injured.”

 Marinette’s eyes widened.  “Y-you mean Ladybug-”

 “-Saved me.”  Her mother interrupted, before Marinette could finish her thought.  “It only winded me because I’m not used to being swept off my feet like that.  Your father’s a little less dramatic when he does it.”

 “Muuuuum…” Marinette chuckled quietly and tried to force the worry from earlier out of her mind.

 Tom stood up and made his way to the kitchen.  “Let’s have some comfort food, and watch a fun movie together.  No homework tonight, Marinette.  Super-Dad insists.”

 . . .

 Chat Noir stretched out the aches in his joints and wandered idly along the rooftop, having finished his patrol.  He sighed and looked at the city lights illuminating the scenery in every direction.  Weeknights were usually quiet, but Adrien could have used more of a distraction.  Without company, his mind wandered back to the akuma fight that day.

 After piecing the information together, including a few details Alya had posted on the Ladyblog from fan submissions, it seemed that the man’s credit card had been rejected when he was trying to buy a cake for his son’s birthday.  Adrien let out a hollow laugh as he felt the pang of jealously creep through him.

 He shook his head and swallowed.  He couldn’t feel that way, he told himself a long time ago that his dad needed him to be strong.  They would be a family again.  One day.

 He looked at the streets below and realised that he was back at the scene of the fight that day.  It had occurred in Marinette’s family bakery.  Wasn’t Ladybug standing next to Marinette’s mother just as he arrived?  Adrien wondered how his kind hearted, caring friend was coping with the situation.  He clicked open his baton’s phone screen to check the time.  Just after midnight.  He would check to see that she was safely in bed, he decided, and continued towards her house.

 Adrien’s superhero transformation afforded him the heightened senses of a cat.  He could see in almost pitch black and the ears on his head would pick up sounds that he would never be able to hear as a normal human.  The first thing he noticed as he landed on Marinette’s rooftop balcony was that he couldn’t hear any sound coming from just below him, where he knew her bed was.  There wasn’t a slow, regular breathing he would expect from a sleeping person.  He frowned and peered tentatively through her skylight.

Nothing.

Her bed was empty, but made.  She hadn’t gone to bed yet?  Surely that wasn’t right.  Chat Noir closed his eyes and took a deep breath.  Perhaps she had worked on homework late, and fell asleep at her desk.  Or maybe she was downstairs, getting a snack.

Reminding himself that he definitely wasn’t snooping, and it was perfectly normal to be concerned for the wellbeing of one’s friends, Chat Noir climbed down the wall of the building to the wide window of Marinette’s room.  He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her slumped over her desk, using an open book as a pillow.  He smiled fondly at her as she shifted in her sleep and the blanket around her shoulders fell down.

Chat Noir’s mask creased as he frowned in confusion.  If she fell asleep at her desk (with a pencil still in her hand, he noted), why was her light turned off?

A yawn forced its way from his mouth, reminding him that he should also be asleep, and he shrugged to himself.  She probably had a light on a timer or something.  Yeah, that was it.

Hidden within the shadows of Marinette’s room, Tikki smiled as she saw the worry disappear from Chat Noir’s face.  She waited several minutes after he disappeared to pull the blanket up around the sleeping girl’s shoulders again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to my sister for beta-reading, and to all of my lovely readers, especially those leaving comments - you guys keep me focused on writing more.  
> Please let me know if anyone feels out of character, or if you have predictions on where the story is heading - I'm keen for more feedback on this.
> 
> Next chapter is unlikely to be ready before July due to a few other projects keeping me busy.


	5. Ultimate Mecha Strike

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Game night (part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while... I said I'd update back in July or something, I think... oops! I had half of this chapter written and then life came and kicked my drive to do anything creative. But here's another chapter. Hopefully the next one won't take anywhere near as long.

Marinette checked the clock and paced across her room to her wardrobe.  She sifted through her clothes and pulled out several items, laying them across her furniture to arrange them in different outfits.  She frowned at two outfits and put them away, mumbling something about ‘too formal’ and ‘too casual.’

“Marinette?”  Tikki asked, rubbing the remnants of her afternoon nap out of her eyes.  “What are the clothes for?”

“Game night is tonight.”  Marinette replied, as though the answer should be obvious.

Tikki blinked and cocked her head to one side in confusion.  “But won’t you be-”

“Quiet, Tikki!  I’m trying to focus on this.”

Tikki obeyed and studied the girl’s actions for a few minutes.  Marinette would frown intensely at an outfit for a few moments before going to a drawer, rummaging through it to pull out a scarf, ribbon, bag, or some other accessory.  Then she would lay the accessory out with the outfit, smile triumphantly, only to sigh, shake her head and start the process over with another outfit.  This continued for several minutes.

“Marinette,” Tikki flew in front of the girl’s face to get her attention.  “You’ll be Ladybug tonight, won’t you?”

Marinette blinked and took a step back.  “Wha?”

“You’ll be Ladybug.  What you wear under the suit doesn’t affect how the suit looks.”

The girl fidgeted with the hem of her t-shirt.  “I-I know… but…”

Tikki looked into Marinette’s eyes and asked softly, “are you wanting to reveal yourself?”

Marinette inhaled sharply.  “No!”  She shook her head.  “No, I just…”

Both heads turned to the trapdoor leading into Marinette’s room as they heard footsteps on the ladder.  Tikki hid behind a pile of books just as the trapdoor opened.

“I’m about to go to bed, sweetie.”  Sabine smiled at her daughter, before noticing the outfits strewn around the room.  “Going somewhere special tomorrow?”

Marinette’s voice caught in her throat.  Her mother would want to know details if she suspected that Marinette was going somewhere.  She swallowed the guilt and shook her head.  “I was just thinking about different outfits and considering some design ideas.”

Sabine examined each outfit.  “They all look very pretty.”  She turned back to her daughter with a devious glint in her eyes.  "When’s the date?”

Marinette clamped her hands over her mouth to hide the spluttering cough that forced its way from her lungs.  “Wh…I… wha?  Mum, I’m not…”

“The skirt looks prettier, and certainly gives off a very romantic feel.”  Sabine ignored her daughter’s response.  “But if there’s any chance you might be doing something active, or if it’s a windy day, I would go with this one.”  She pointed to a different outfit with a stylish pair of pants.

Marinette was still trying to regain her composure.  “I’m… I’m not going on a date, mum.  It’s just for design.”

Sabine studied her daughter for a moment before smiling.  “Alright.  Don’t stay up too late, will you?”

Marinette smiled and gave her mother a kiss goodnight.  After Sabine had retreated downstairs, Marinette looked at the two outfits once more, before nodding to herself and changing.

She studied her reflection in the mirror.  Long striped socks reached over her knees, and almost met with the hem of her black skirt.  She twirled around and smiled as she saw the pink flower embroidery on the hem of the skirt – an embellishment that she’d added herself.  As her gaze rose to look at the fitted top, she saw Tikki hovering behind her with a puzzled expression on her face.

“What is it, Tikki?”

“I didn’t think you felt this way about Chat Noir.”

Marinette’s eyes went wide.  “Chat Noir?”  She shook her head.  “I don’t…”

Tikki’s head tilted slightly to one side.  “Why wear date clothes if it’s not a date?”

Marinette shuffled awkwardly on the spot and buried her face in her hands to hide the blush creeping into her cheeks.  “I’ll be in his room!  I’ve only been there during a fight, and I’m nervous.  I want to feel pretty even though he won’t see.”  She sighed and slowly lowered her hands, keeping her eyes locked on the floor.

Tikki blinked her large eyes.  “You do remember you’ll be Ladybug, right?  Like I said earlier, what you wear underneath won’t change the suit.”

“I know,” Marinette said, gripping her arms around her middle.  “But I want to feel pretty, Tikki.  I know Adrien won’t be there, and nobody will see anyway, but I feel more comfortable and more confident if I’ve taken a bit of time to look nice.”  She drew a pattern on the floor with her toe.

“Hmm... In that case, you should wear that silver necklace you had on the other day.  It was very pretty!”

Marinette grinned widely, grateful that her kwami was always understanding and supportive, and walked over to her dresser to open her jewellery box.  As Tikki fastened the necklace, Marinette looked at the other items in the box.  She pulled out a hair clip with two pink flowers and held it up to her fringe.  “This matches.”

Tikki grimaced.  “It does, but it won’t be hidden by the suit.  If he sees you wearing it with and without your mask, there’s a chance Chat Noir will work out who you are.”

Marinette frowned and held the hair clip in her hand.  It was a gift from her mother, and she liked wearing it on special occasions.  Tonight felt like a special occasion, despite it being a casual affair.

“Marinette, it’s time to go.”

Marinette slipped the hair clip into her pocket and walked over to her bed to hide some pillows under her blankets.

. . .

As Ladybug passed the school on her way to the Agreste mansion, she remembered the conversation between Nino and Adrien earlier in the week.  Adrien had said he would be busy tonight, but Marinette had to leave before she found out why.  She couldn’t help but marvel at the convenience of the timing, and hoped Chat hadn’t coerced him into giving up his bedroom for the evening.  Adrien didn’t know how to say no to people, his tolerance of Chloe was proof of that.

As she approached the mansion, she was pleased to see that Chat had added to the glow marks (paw prints… of course!).  They would have a hard time explaining themselves if they were seen on security cameras tonight.  Just as Ladybug was about to swing over to the mansion, she peeked through the window and raised her hand to her face to conceal her smile.

. . .

Chat Noir rearranged the cushions and blankets on the sofa.  Again.

He had spent most of the afternoon as Adrien looking up pictures of lounge rooms and tried his best to make his sofa look comfortable and inviting.  Something was off though.  He had learnt five different methods of folding and arranging blankets, and none of them looked right.  He told himself that it was worth suffering all of Plagg’s teasing if it meant everything would look perfect for Ladybug.  But it wasn’t perfect.

He stood beside the television and scratched his head.  The coffee table was symmetrical, with a few treats laid out (other snacks and drinks were in his mini-fridge to keep them cool), and the blankets were folded neatly over the arms of the sofa, with cushions on the corners.  Were the colours off?  Maybe he should put the controllers on the blankets instead of the table?

A tap at the window jarred him from his thoughts, and he turned to see Ladybug hanging from her yoyo outside the window.  Was it that time already?  He had completely forgotten to leave the window open for her.

Mentally cursing himself, Chat Noir hurried over to open the window and offered his hand to Ladybug to help her from the sill to the floor.  He forced himself to ignore the fluttering in his stomach, and gave her a broad grin.

“Good evening, Ladybug.  You look radiant, as always.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes.  “Good evening, Chat Noir.”  She shrugged a small, nondescript bag off her shoulder.  “Croissants?”

Chat’s face lit up as he took the bag.  “They smell delicious.”  He set the treats out on a plate on the coffee table.

Ladybug followed him and admired the sofa arrangement.  “Looks cosy.”

“You think so?”

With the look on his face, Ladybug wondered if her partner had become Puppy Noir when she wasn’t looking.  She struggled to suppress her giggle and tried to force her mind back to the conversation.  “Mmm… not what I was expecting.”

Puppy Noir’s ears drooped slightly, worried that he was disappointing her.  “Not what you were expecting?”

Ladybug blinked at her partner as she realised how her previous statement sounded.  She hadn’t even meant to say it out loud.  “Oh, uh… truthfully?  I was kinda worried that you’d pull some silly romantic stunt with rose petals and chocolates.”

Chat laughed and was thankful that his mask covered enough of his face that a blush wouldn’t be immediately obvious.  The thought had definitely occurred to him… “I could certainly arrange a romantic rendezvous if my lady would like it.”  He took Ladybug’s hand and lifted it to his lips, but she slipped from his grasp and tapped his nose before he could kiss her.

“I’ll pass, thanks.”

A moment of silence passed between them, and as Ladybug cast her eyes around the room, she was reminded of exactly whose room it was.  She shifted on her feet, trying to stop herself from looking around the room. 

“It’s strange to be here without Adrien or an akuma.”

Chat Noir made a small hum that sounded like affirmation.  Adrien definitely wasn’t here.  Absolutely not.  If Ladybug ever found out the truth, there was a good chance she would be sporting a new cat fur coat.  He definitely wouldn’t get a date with her then.

Not-Adrien cleared his throat and picked up a controller.  “Ready for round one?”

. . .

“Ha-hah!  Eat my Lady-bombs!”

“Delicious.  Time for Catdouken!”

“Yikes!”  Ladybug mashed the buttons on her controller, and watched the red robot on the screen flip into the air, dodging the worst of the damage from the black mecha’s attack.  “Time to counter attack.” 

This time it was Chat Noir’s turn to frantically hit the buttons on his controller.  His timing over the course of the match had been slightly slower, and the extra damage he was taking had been adding up.  With one final attack, the black mecha slumped over on screen, while the red one stood proudly in a victory pose.  “LADYBUG WINS!” flashed on the screen, followed by their scores for the match.

“Ladybug style! Booyah!” Ladybug stood up from the couch and struck up a pose similar to her robot.

Chat Noir sank back into the cushions and pouted.  “Awww, I seriously thought I had you that time!  That’s, what… five victories in a row?  Not fair.”

Ladybug felt bad.  She hadn’t meant to beat him so badly, she just seemed to have better timing.  “The last match was close.  You had me worried when you used Catdouken.”

Chat looked up at his partner and mentally slapped himself.  What was he doing, being a sore loser and making her feel bad for winning?  It’s not like he would’ve wanted her to go easy on him.  He shook his head.  “I’m a big cat, I can take it, Bug.  You won fair and square.  Five times.”  He laughed, trying to hide his frustration.  “I just need to practice more.  Or simply admit that you’re the Goddess of the Mecha, and hope I can beat you at something else.”

Ladybug grimaced.  “I don’t think having the power of bad luck to my good luck is going to make it easy for you… We’d have to swap miraculous or something to get a fair test.” Chat shot her a devilish grin and looked thoughtful.  “That wasn’t a suggestion!”

“Relax,” he waved his hand.  “I wouldn’t take the spots away from you, I don’t suit them nearly as well.”  Marinette tried not to think about why he sounded so sure of that, as he continued.  “Not to mention having to explain piercing my ears to my dad.  That wouldn’t be fun!”  After a pause, he added, “I am curious to see how I’d fair without my bad luck, though.”

Ladybug frowned and watched her partner walk across the room to a bar-fridge.  She barely registered him offering her another drink and pulling out a small box of cheese.  He couldn’t possibly mean… no… and yet…

Either her eyes were betraying her, or Chat Noir was building what seemed to be a one-cat pillow fort on the right side of the sofa.  She blinked.  “Chat Noir?”

Chat bit his lip and answered the unspoken question lingering between them.  “If I stay in here, and you sit on the sofa, I can play against you and you won’t see me at all.”

Ladybug frowned.  “Seriously, Chat?  Our secret identities are meant to be exactly that – secret!  They aren’t a game.”

Chat looked at the floor.  He shouldn’t have done this, he knew she wouldn’t take it well.  He should’ve just accepted his losses and played a few co-op games with her.  He’d discussed the idea at length with Plagg, though, who was fully on board (if only because he would get extra cheese out of it) and had argued many good points.  “I’m not treating it like it’s a game, I just thought it might be useful to know the effect of my miraculous on my luck.”  _And I wanted to sit with you without the masks_ , he thought.

There was silence as Ladybug thought it over.  There was logic in what he said, and she hated that.  He was going to great lengths to make a secure fort for his identity with two thick blankets and only a small opening at the front (which was likely to impede his view of the screen now that she thought about it), and had completely stopped once she spoke up.  He didn’t need to say ‘I won’t if you don’t want me to.’  She already knew he would.  It still felt reckless though, and she didn’t like that.

“Have you done this before?”  She gestured to the structure of bedding and furniture.

Chat raised an eyebrow at Ladybug.  “Made a pillow fort?”  Was he doing it wrong?

“Dropped your mask with someone else around to ‘test your luck.’”

_Oh._ “No, of course not.  Who would I do that with?”  He muttered the last part mostly to himself, but Ladybug heard it easily.

She looked around the room as though the answer were obvious.  “Well, you said you were close to Adrien…”

He bit his tongue to stop himself from saying anything that would give him away.  He’s become good at keeping secrets.  How did he slip up on something like this?  “I honestly haven’t ever thought to do something like that with him.”  _Because I have no idea how that would even work._

Silence hung between them as they were both deep in their own thoughts.  Just as Chat Noir opened his mouth to berate his own idea, he heard her speak very softly.

“Alright.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, comments and feedback are highly appreciated.


	6. Ultimate Mecha Strike (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Game night part 2 - Chat Noir wanted to remove his mask, and play against Ladybug under the cover of a blanket fort. 
> 
> Silence hung between them as they were both deep in their own thoughts. Just as Chat Noir opened his mouth to berate his own idea, he heard her speak very softly.  
> “Alright.”

“Alright.”

Ladybug’s voice was uncharacteristically soft.  At first Chat Noir thought he had imagined it; this was reckless, after all, and Ladybug was cautious.  “You mean it?”

Until she heard Chat Noir’s response, Ladybug wasn’t sure if she had answered aloud or not.  She still wasn’t sure what possessed her to go through with this, but she couldn’t take her answer back now.  She grabbed the last blanket and pulled up a chair on the left side of the couch.

“Ladybu-”

“Two barriers are safer than one.  Do we have another blanket?”  Ladybug heard the smile erupt onto her partner’s face and felt the tingling of excitement from him.  She barely suppressed a chuckle at his enthusiasm.  “Come on, cat, we don’t have all night.”

Without a second thought, Adrien vaulted over the couch, towards his bed, and threw the blankets in the air.  He caught them with far less grace than he had planned, but played it off as though he had intended it, and presented the blankets to Ladybug on outstretched arms.

“Will this make you a bed bug?  ‘Cause I wouldn’t mind if you bit me.”  Chat flashed a seductive grin at Ladybug.  His charms were wasted, however, because Ladybug was staring at the blankets in shock.  Her face was making its best effort to blend into her suit, and a strange strangled noise escaped her as she inhaled.

Ladybug pointed at the pile of blankets in Chat Noir’s arms.  “Those are Adrien’s.”  Marinette forced her mind to focus on one thought at a time, to prevent extreme embarrassment. 

“So are the ones I used?”  The statement came out as a question.

“That’s different!” Ladybug hissed.  “You can’t just take them from his bed.”

Chat Noir finally caught on to the issue, and frowned.  There weren’t any other blankets in the room, and he wasn’t about to risk getting caught by security cameras in the corridors.  “You take my blankets then, and I’ll use Adrien’s.  He won’t mind, and if he does I’ll let him beat me in a fencing match.”

“Heh, ‘let him’… sure.”

It was a strange feeling, being unknowingly complimented and insulted at the same time.

. . .

“Last chance to chicken out before you’re in the same room as my insanely attractive secret identity, Bugaboo.  Sure you can handle it?”

“The more you talk, the more I’m sure that I’m not the chicken in this room.”

“Bold words!  Claws in, Plagg.”  A bright green light flashed across the wall and Ladybug closed her eyes and turned her head from the only opening in her small fort.  Unnecessary, perhaps, but she would not be caught out.

“Oh, my, my.”  The voice sounded very self-important, and Ladybug felt her senses go onto high alert.  “Dropping your mask in front of Ladybug, eh kid?  I didn’t think you had the guts.  Then again… you’re hardly in front of her, are you?” 

“Plagg…” Chat Noir warned.  Except he wasn’t Chat anymore…

Ladybug forced herself to relax, and tried to pace her breathing.  It was just Chat Noir’s kwami.  Nobody had come into the room. 

“Well, I’d better fly off, you’ll need all the luck you can get, kid.”

“Hey, who’s side are you on?”

“The winning side.”

The room fell silent for a few minutes, until Ladybug spoke up.  “Ready for round… what are we up to?”

“Six.”  Chat’s voice was quieter than normal.  There was a sharp beeping noise from the game, as the right side of the screen shuffled through a list of mecha before settling with NAD03, the black cat, again.   “Ready when you are.”

Ladybug confirmed her own mecha and pressed the button to start the match.  Chat Noir was being oddly quiet.  _Where’s all that usual bravado?  Not that I miss it, of course, but still… this is weird._

3…2…1… Fight!

. . .

Adrien frowned and leaned against the side of the couch as “Ladybug Wins” flashed across the screen.

“What’s the verdict? Feel luckier that time?”  Ladybug said with a smug tone.

Adrien’s frown faded at her words, and was replaced by a serene expression, that nobody could see.  “Surprisingly, yes.  Despite another loss.”

“Now we’re six-zero.”

“You have no idea how hard it is to use a controller with those claws.  Or…” Adrien paused.  “Maybe you do?  I guess fake nails would be just as awkward.”

Ladybug shook her head slightly and returned to contemplating her partner’s behaviour.  He seemed far less ostentatious in the last match.  He wasn’t acting like the Chat Noir she knew, yet he did seem familiar.

“L-Ladybug?  Ready for another round?” 

“Mmm?  Sure, if you want?  Tell me if you’re getting tired of losing, Chat.  You’ve been unusually quiet.”

Adrien inhaled sharply.  _Idiot!  You removed your mask and stopped acting like Chat Noir on instinct.  She’ll figure you out._ “Miss my charming voice, did you, Bugaboo?”

“Ugh.  You wish.”  _Aaaaand the cat’s back._

“So what do you say, one or two more bouts, and then we trounce other players online?  I want to test out my lucky charm before suiting up again.”

“Your lucky charm?”  Ladybug asked incredulously.  _Please tell me that’s not another lame pick-up line._

“Don’t get jealous, Milady, but I do have another lucky charm.  Not as powerful as you, but it normally works surprisingly well.”  Adrien ran his thumb along the string of colourful beads that Marinette had once given him and smiled.

“Uh-huh.”  Marinette had to admit to herself that she was getting tired of beating Chat Noir.  Her suit heightened her awareness and reflexes, even without the added luck that seemed to ensure she dealt critical damage more often than she should.  Even a powerful lucky charm wouldn’t be a match for Tikki’s magic.

A split-second after selecting to begin another fight in the game, Ladybug made her decision.  “Spots off,” she whispered, as the screen flashed white before the camera panned down to the fight stage.  She held a finger to her lips as Tikki appeared beside her and shot her a confused look.

Marinette shuffled her legs into a more comfortable position and pointed to her purse.  She felt something move in her pocket, but had to turn her attention back to the game as the countdown finished. 

“Let’s start out with my Ear Thunder!”  The black cat mecha shot a lightning attack from its ears.

“Awww, that tickled.”  Marinette swirled the left analog stick and tapped a pattern onto the buttons with her right thumb.  “Try a Heavy-Kick Combo!”  Her red mecha jumped into the air and spun towards his, landing the first kick, but narrowly missing the follow ups as the cat robot somersaulted over her.

“No thanks, Bugs.  Maybe later.”

Marinette bit her lower lip and unleashed another flurry of punches to build her mecha’s power.  They traded blows for a few minutes, and by the time Marinette had enough power for a special finishing attack, her robot had also sustained some serious damage.  But so had Chat Noir’s.  _Time for a big finale, then._

Marinette held down the left trigger button to activate her boosters and swirled the analog stick again.  “Time for my Flying Hyper Storm!”

At the same time, Chat Noir’s robot drew both arms to the left side of its body and then threw all of its force forward into a final attack.  “Catdouken!”  Chat Noir said with the same timing and intonation as his mecha.

Marinette shook her head at her partner’s antics, but cringed when she realised that his attack charged faster and had range.  He would get the hit in first.  Had she acted a split second faster, Marinette could have absorbed his attack with her shields.  She could have jumped just high enough to dodge it completely.  She could have won.

With her last sliver of health gone, Ladybug’s robot fell to the ground in defeat, while the black cat robot proudly held its arms up in a victory pose.  She heard a chair and blankets falling on the other side of the couch as Chat Noir cried out in happiness.

“I won!  I finally won!”  Adrien stood tall, replicating his own mecha’s victory pose, and momentarily forgetting the reason for their forts.

“Well played, Chat Noir.  Is… is your fort still standing?”

“Ah-hah… It might have been?”  Adrien suddenly felt rather foolish for his overly enthusiastic victory dance.  “Erm… how about I just suit up and we can play co-op for bit.  To be honest, I was getting tired of one v. one.”

Marinette pursed her lips thoughtfully.  She didn’t want her partner to know that she wasn’t Ladybug at the moment, so she would have to time her transformation very carefully.  She shuffled her legs, which were starting to feel stiff, and nudged Tikki to silently check that her kwami was ready.  Affirmative.  “Alright, sounds good.  Whenever you’re ready.”

Adrien tried not to.  He really did, but at the sound of her shuffling, he instinctively looked towards her fort.  Before he tore his eyes away, he saw part of her leg peek out from under the blanket.  It was most definitely not red with black spots.  Adrien immediately turned around and stared up at the ceiling.  He saw nothing.  He definitely saw nothing.  The love of his life most certainly wasn’t sitting on the other side of the couch with nothing but a blanket hiding her true face.  _Breathe, Adrien.  Breathe._

Marinette frowned slightly.  She knew Chat hadn’t gone off to transform somewhere else, since she could still hear him breathing (a little heavily, did he really get that worked up over a game?).  She was waiting to hear him say something or see the light of his transformation, but he sure was taking his time.  She cleared her throat.  “Whenever you’re ready?”

“R-right!  Yeah.”  _Damnit, Adrien!  Your voice did not just crack!_

. . .

Chat Noir yawned into the back of his hand as he watched the victory replay from their last match.  Together, they truly were a force to be reckoned with.  He looked over to see Ladybug shake her head quickly and blink back sleep.  Turning back to the game, he signed them both out of online mode and turned off the console.  “I think we should call it a night, you look about ready to drop.”

Ladybug was about to argue with him instinctively, before she remembered that she still had to get home safely.  She stood up and stretched out her back.  “Yeah… don’t want to fall asleep on the way home and be found tomorrow morning.”

Chat grimaced at the thought.  “I’d offer to take you home, but…”

Ladybug laughed.  “I’ll be fine.”  She groaned when she noticed the blankets strewn across the couch and packets of food on the coffee table.  “We’d better clean up first.”

Chat Noir put his hand on Ladybug’s as she went to grab a blanket.  “I can do this, you should go.”  As she opened her mouth to argue, he put a finger to her lips.  “Go, Ladybug.  You’re far more tired than I am, and I..errr… well… I don’t have too far to go...” 

Ladybug frowned, and was about to argue when a big yawn forced her to acknowledge just how tired she actually was.  She nodded apologetically to her partner.  “Thanks, Chat.  I promise I’ll do the clean up next time.”

_Send me a message when you get home safely_ , Adrien said in his head, but Chat Noir simply waved goodbye to Ladybug.  She was a superhero, she would be fine.  The rush of cold air over the rooftops did wonders for keeping a tired mind awake enough to focus, after all.

Chat Noir had just finished folding the third blanket when her parting words suddenly registered properly.  “Next time,” he repeated, and couldn’t keep the grin from his face.

. . .

Ladybug fell into her bed and had to fight off the immediate wave of sleep that threatened to overwhelm her.  She couldn’t succumb to sleep just yet.  Forcing herself back onto her feet, she paced around her room to keep herself awake for a few more minutes.  When she couldn’t wait any longer, she pulled out her yoyo and slid it open to the phone section, to send her partner a message.  A message she would normally send him after a late night akuma fight: _Home safe._

Ten seconds later, a reply came: _Same._

Marinette let her transformation fall away.  The sweet embrace of sleep could not come quickly enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to say a very special thank you to everyone who left such lovely comments on the last chapter. I really am blown away by the positive messages and encouragement I get on this story. Thank you so much everyone!
> 
> I must admit that I'm not totally happy with some parts of this chapter. I've left the story for a week and come back to rewrite what wasn't working, but I'm still not pleased with how it's turned out. Trying again would probably not result in a better chapter, just a delayed one, so I've opted to upload what I have and move the story along. 
> 
> As always, please continue to leave feedback (critique and suggestions for improvement on my writing are welcome!)


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